Kings acquire defenseman Phaneuf in trade with Senators

Dion Phaneuf is on the move again as the Los Angeles Kings hope he bolsters their blue line for a playoff run.

Los Angeles acquired the veteran defenseman and forward Nate Thompson from the Ottawa Senators on Tuesday night for forwards Marian Gaborik and Nick Shore. The Senators are retaining 25 percent of Phaneuf’s $7 million salary-cap hit, so the Kings get a top-four defenseman for $5.25 million over the next three-plus years.

“Dion brings to our club a great deal of experience and leadership,” Kings general manager Rob Blake said. “He also plays with a physical edge, which complements our lineup well.”

The 32-year-old Phaneuf was pulled from Ottawa’s bench during a 6-3 loss at the Pittsburgh Penguins with the trade being finalized afterward. The Kings visit the Penguins on Thursday, so he doesn’t even have to leave Pittsburgh to meet up with his new team.

“I’m excited to be going to the Los Angeles Kings,” Phaneuf said. “It’s going to be a real good experience for me to be able to join that team. ... I’m excited about the team that they have, where they’re at in the standings and I’m going to go there and do my best to do whatever I can to help their team.”

Phaneuf has 16 points in 52 games this season and 478 in 954 games during his 13-year NHL career with the Flames, Maple Leafs and Senators. BRUINS 5, FLAMES 2» Patrice Bergeron and Riley Nash scored two goals apiece, helping Boston beat Calgary. PENGUINS 6, SENATORS 3 » Jake Guentzel scored twice, Zach Aston-Reese scored his first two NHL goals and Pittsburgh beat Ottawa. BLUE JACKETS 4, ISLANDERS 1» Oliver Bjorkstrand and Pierre-Luc Dubois scored power-play goals in the second period to give Columbus the lead, and the Blue Jackets went on to beat New York. SABRES 5, LIGHTNING 3» Ryan O’Reilly scored a goal and added two assists in Buffalo’s win over Tampa Bay.